1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a urine collecting device, and more particularly to a urine collection funnel for directing urine into a container.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Being able to collect urine conveniently is important in several medical contexts. Tests on an individual's urine can reveal important medical information, such as the presence of substances in the body or specific medical conditions such as gastric ulcers. And the disabled, such as bed-ridden patients or invalids, also require a convenient manner of collecting urine that does not require them to get to a toilet.
However, it is not always easy to collect urine, especially for a female. While a male can usually direct his urine flow into a container, such as a glass bottle or a plastic container, a female generally has a much more difficult time accurately directing the flow of her urine. Thus, females sometimes have difficulty filling a container without some spilling and/or splashing of urine.
In a hospital, urine samples are sometimes collected using what is known as a "hat" because it resembles an upside down hat with a wide brim and a crown that is open at the top. The "brim" sits on the rim of a toilet under the toilet seat. After the patient urinates into the container formed by the open crown, the urine is emptied into a container for storage, testing or disposal. For bed-ridden or otherwise non-ambulatory patients in a hospital, a bed pan can be used instead of a hat. However, these devices, not being easily stored and readily portable, are not particularly convenient or practical outside a hospital or doctor's office. These devices may also experience spillage or contamination in transferring the urine into a container.
There are known in the art many different kinds of portable devices for collecting urine. Typically, such a device includes a funnel for receiving the urine and a detachable container for collecting and, if necessary, transporting the urine. Examples of urine collectors are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,657,975 (Shiells), No. 3,161,891 (Bauman), No. 3,473,172 (Friedman et al.), No. 3,927,426 (Geddes) and No. 4,559,649 (Burnett). Those patents disclose funnels with top edges that fail to properly fit the anatomy of a user, and thus are not particularly suitable for fitting against the pelvic region of an individual, particularly a female. Moreover, the funnel and detachable containers of these patents are not provided with adequate means for preventing or limiting leakage and/or spillage. The overall result of such conventional designs is that these urine collection devices can experience splashing and/or spilling of the urine as it is deposited into the funnel and drains into the container.
It is also known to design urine collection funnels to prevent leaking or contamination by the urine as it drains into an attached container. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,711,871 (Sherin) and No. 3,878,571 (Seeley) show urine collection devices with a bottom portion having a U-shaped channel for fitting over a lip of a urine collecting container. However, such conventional designs are still capable of leaking urine and contaminating the urine container and/or the urine sample.
It is desirable, therefore, to provide an improved device for collecting urine. The device should be simple, effective and convenient to use, for women as well as men, and also be inexpensive and sufficiently portable and easily stored to be practical for the home, as well as in professional medical settings.